No matter which side of the debate you fall on, the truth is that there will be a great deal of changes that will come about thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Not only will this act change the number of individuals with active health insurance policies it will change the face of the way health care is delivered throughout the U.S. Besides increasing the number of insured, it will also begin to help get a handle on overall costs of medical services. As far as workers’ compensation is concerned, current studies show that only 2% of cumulative medical spending in the U.S. is related to workers’ comp payments. Whether purposefully or otherwise, workers compensation (WC) was mostly overlooked during the creation of the ACA. There are however several effects that could take place indirectly on WC as a whole depending on each state.

Once the exchanges and mandates begin to go online in 2014, workers comp benefit providers will start to learn more about these potential effects. One of the goals of the ACA is that better access to health insurance will mean a healthier overall population. This in itself is quite significant since a healthy workforce is less likely to require WC benefits except in the case of a workplace accident. It also means that recuperation times from actual work place injuries can be shortened thanks to better level of health. Rather than linger on workers compensation while being seen for both work-related and non-work related issues, individuals will be able to get back to work sooner.

Another potentially major change could come about thanks to the cost shift that may occur moving the burden from WC insurance to individuals’ health insurance. While it may be a small number, there are those in the workforce who attempt to file workers comp claims for illnesses or injuries that are not actually related to the job. Others may attempt to stay on workers compensation after an injury as long as possible in order to receive health benefits for issues not related to their on the job injury. With increasing access to individual health plans there is a likelihood that many of these individuals will begin to seek care outside the workers compensation process. While this may not make a noticeable difference in small cases, larger cases could see an enormous cost savings to the workers compensation insurer.

The issue of convenience may also play a huge role in the savings realized by workers’ compensation providers. Many workers appreciate having a greater level of control over their own health care. Relying on workers compensation claims can involve dealing with multiple individuals and having to choose doctors that are in an employer medical network. To this end, utilizing their health insurance to cover on the job injuries would allow them this sort of control. This means that the possibility exists that the overall number of workers’ compensation claims could see a significant reduction.

Stay Tuned for Part 2